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FAQ: International Applicants

Before You Apply

If you’re not sure if you're an international student, please read the detailed information on the Applying to College as an International Applicant page.

For more information about the OCAS International application process, refer to the International Applicant Portal User Guide. (The user guide is only for applicants who are applying via IAS.)

How We Can Help

Here are the types of things that we can help you with:

  • Login issues
  • Resetting your password (if you already have access to your account)
  • Resending the account access email (when the college already sent it to the correct email, but the link has expired)
  • How to make changes to your profile
  • How to upload documents
  • How to submit your application
  • Technical issues

Please note that we do not make admissions decisions, nor can we make changes to your application.

For assistance with anything not listed above, please contact the college(s) directly.

Applying

For information about admission requirements, fees, and program availability, go to the International website for each of the colleges that you’re interested in attending.

If you cannot find the information there, contact the International Admissions department.

As an International applicant, you must submit a separate application for each college that you are interested in attending. Each college determines how many program choices you can add to an application.

OCAS does not make agent referrals. However, the colleges that you are interested in might be able to help you. Contact the International Admissions department.

You cannot receive financial assistance from the Canadian government. However, we do have information about scholarships for international students in the International Student Fees and Finances section of the Applying to College as an International Student page.

You can also contact the International Admissions department of the colleges you are interested in attending.

To start a new application for a different college:

  1. Go to the Apply Now International Students page.
  2. Click the Apply Now link for the college you’d like to attend.
  3. If the college you’re applying to uses the OCAS International Application Service (IAS), when you reach the Login page, enter your existing OCAS credentials. You don’t need to create a new account.

No. You must create a separate application for each college. For instructions, see the previous question.

To find out about processing times, contact the International Admissions department of the colleges that you are interested in attending.

The documents required for international applicants will vary from program to program. For detailed information about applying as an international applicant and about specific documents, visit our International Applicants page.

For information on English language proficiency and other language requirements, read the English Language Proficiency section of our International Applicants page.

No. If you want to attend college in Ontario, you must make all the arrangements before you leave your home country. You cannot make the arrangements once you are a visitor in Canada.

For more information on studying in Canada, see our International Applicants page.

Accessing My Account

If you are having trouble logging in to your account, you can try to reset the password.

  1. Go to the International Application Service login page.
  2. Click Forgot password and follow the instructions.

Note: The password reset email will go to the address that you use to log in. If you need help or don’t have access to your login email, please give our Customer Contact Centre a call at 1-855-232-5518 or reach out to one of our agents via chat on our website.

If an agent created your application and you would like to access it, you must contact the college to request that they send you an account access email. The email will provide instructions on creating an account to access your application or linking an existing account with your application.

If you are applying to a college that uses the OCAS International Application Service (IAS), you will be able to log into the account you created on the Domestic site.

Note: Before you start your International application, go to your browser settings, and clear the browsing data. The steps to clear the data might be different for each browser. The following example shows how to clear the data in Google Chrome.

  1. Open the Settings page.
    In the Google Chrome 3-dot menu. Settings is circled in red.

  1. Click Privacy and security; then click Clear browsing data.
    On the Settings page, in the navigation on the left, Privacy and Security is circled in red. A red arrow points to the Clear Browsing Data option on the page. Clear Browsing Data is also circled in red.

  1. Select all the checkboxes and click Clear data.
    In the Clear Browsing Data dialog box, on the Basic tab, all three checkboxes are selected: Browsing History, Cookies and Other Site Data, and Cached Images and Files.

If you are applying to a college that uses the OCAS International Application Service (IAS), you will be able to log into the account you created on the Domestic site.

To start an International application:

    1. Go to the Apply Now International Students page.
    2. Click the Log In link for the college you’d like to attend.
    3. Login with the email and password that you used to create your account.

You must contact the college directly and request that they remove the agent from your application.

Offers, Deferrals, and Refunds

Yes, if you don't have the maximum number of program choices in your application, you may be able to add program choices. You should contact the International Admissions department to confirm the maximum that they allow.

For more details on when and how you can add program choices, see the International Applicant Portal User Guide.

Contact the college to confirm that you can apply for another program and to find out how.

For instructions on how to request a deferral, please see the Applicant Portal User Guide. 

If you do not see the option to request a deferral, please contact the International Department at the college to confirm whether you can request a deferral.

There could be an issue with the browser that you're using. Try logging in to your account with a different browser. You must use the latest version of Google Chrome, Firefox, or Microsoft Edge.

If you use Google Chrome and have the Adobe Acrobat Extension installed, try turning off the extension.

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